This high-intensity trainer workout gives athletes a lot to do in only 60 minutes. This week’s workout comes from Laura Henry, a New York-based coach working with Team MPI. Henry is a USA Triathlon Level I certified coach, Ironman certified coach, USA Cycling Level 3 coach, VFS certified bike fitter, NASM certified personal trainer, and is certified in RockTape Functional Movement Techniques. She is also an Ironman and half-Ironman finisher.

Race week at the Ironman World Championship is always full of a few fun surprises, and these two bikes from Ventum are no exception. We stopped by the Ventum booth to get a look at the brand’s $29,000 “Dream Bike”, as well as the super custom bike of one Kona age grouper.

American Heather Jackson is a top contender for Saturday’s Ironman World Championship podium. Here, she shares how she breaks down the run portion of 140.6 to have the best chance of mental and physical success on race day.

When I was in college, my friends and I would regularly run an “outer” around the outer perimeter (about 4.5 miles) of the U.S. Naval Academy to stay fit. One of my friends complained that even though he ran as much as I did, he wasn’t as fast as I was when we had to run 1.5-miles as part of the semi-annual PRT (physical readiness test) or raced in a local 10K.

Pain is a slippery concept—it’s highly individual, and an individual’s perception varies by circumstance. Sure, listen to your body, but by definition, an endurance athlete is someone who is conditioned to endure discomfort. The basis of training, too, is to repeatedly stress your body and pull back—aches and pains are a part of life for an athlete

Triathlete contributor and swimming all-star Sara McLarty has a blog with more than 500 creative workouts used in her Masters swim program in Clermont, Fla. We’ll feature a workout every Friday so you have new ideas to take to the pool.

How to program your brain for fast, flawless transitionsYou just nailed your swim split, but how did all of those athletes get out on the road before you? Fast transitions don’t need to be a mystery if you harness the power of muscle memory. Being able to get through a transition or your daily drive to work without thinking about it—what scientists call “motor learning”—is a combo effort between your brain and the motor units in your muscles. Repetition causes new pathways to form between them—like creating new trails in the wilderness.

Follow this plan to transform your half-Ironman bike fitness.Riding your fastest 56 miles is a balancing act between stretching your effort beyond aerobic mode and not going out too fast too soon only to blow up on the run. On race day, pacing and rhythm in a Zone 3 heart rate is the key to your best Ironman 70.3 ride. To improve your race performance, you need to train to cycle with maximum efficiency at goal heart rate ranges, sustain and increase base endurance, and incorporate high-intensity intervals to increase your threshold to up your Zone 3 power output. This plan outlines that strategy in five weeks!

Gauge fitness and improve power and speed.Smart pacing is the hardest thing for most swimmers to grasp and needs to be trained. The first time you swim this test set, you may not be able to keep your pace consistent the entire time. Don’t stress! After a few times, it will feel easier as you gain strength. Being able to swim as fast on your eighth 100 as you did on your first takes power!

After a week’s worth of racing in the Doha heat, the 2016 Road World Championships come to a close on Sunday with the elite men’s road race. At more than 250km in length it’s one of the longest races of the year and the chance for one rider to earn the right to wear the rainbow jersey for the next 12 months.

Here’s what you need to know about the elite men’s road race at the Doha Worlds.

Revealing that a major story is coming soon about hidden motors, the inventor of the mechanical devices, Istvan ‘Stefano’ Varjas has said that he sold one of the devices to an unnamed person in 1998 and then obeyed a exclusivity agreement for ten years.

“It was the end of ‘98 and I had to stay quiet until 2009, for ten years. It was time for sleeping, ten years,” Varjas told Ger Gilroy, the presenter of the Newstalk radio show Off the Ball.

“In 1998 I just sold one prototype. To my friend. I got big money, I just go to sleep for ten years and I don’t do anything.

Hi! How’s it going? This morning was chilly so I wore a long sleeve top for my run. Even though SoCal doesn’t get super cold, the mornings are definitely cool with a crisp chill in the air. If you’re from a humid place that tends to hold onto the heat all day it can be surprising how cool SoCal mornings and evenings are!

Capitalize on your end-of-season tri fitness to boost your run speed in 2017.

As the triathlon season comes to an end, it’s the perfect time to take all of your hard-earned fitness and use it as a springboard to improve your running. Your annual fitness is at an all-time high as you peak for your last triathlon of the year, and it’s an ideal chance to have a goal marathon or half-marathon late in the season. If you are ending your tri season with an iron-distance race, you’ll want to give your run legs a break before embarking on run training again. However, if you are an athlete who is finishing your triathlon season with a half-iron or shorter distance race, here’s how to maximize your tri fitness to be even stronger off the bike in 2017.

A delicate situation. A challenge. Time to reassess. Time to start from scratch.

These are among the phrases used at the Vuelta a España, by BMC Racing directors as well as peloton insiders, to describe American Tejay van Garderen, who abandoned the Spanish race on Stage 17 after riding in support of Samuel Sánchez.

Chances are you’ve heard of creatine supplements before. While more usually associated with bodybuilders or footballers, the use of creatine is also fairly common among track cyclists, especially those in the sprint disciplines. So does creatine supplementation also have a role for road cyclists? Dietitian Alan McCubbin investigates.

I saw a woman’s face in a cycling bunch ride two weeks ago that is imprinted on my mind, because it’s a face I know so well. I had never met this woman, but what I recognized was that look. Her face wasn’t necessarily filled with determination, but fear. You could see she was riddled with nerves and as she pushed harder to keep up she didn’t have the pain-face we all know that shows grit and even just a little enjoyment in the challenge of pushing harder. Instead it was just furrowed brows and a grimace.

Signing up is just step one. Now you start the work and planning for a successful run. It doesn’t matter if it’s a 5k, 10k, half marathon or a full 26.2 miles – there are certain things all runners should do when they sign up for a race. Check out this list as part of your race preparation…

When demands build up, sleep is the account we make the most withdrawals upon, rarely paying it back sufficiently. But what price in health, performance and longevity do we really end up paying for that debt?

Every Tuesday we’ll feature a different coach’s workout you can complete in 60 minutes (or less!).

This week’s run workout comes from coach Sue Sotir of Breakthrough Performance Coaching in Ipswich, Mass. “Running requires enough time to be durable and to have the engine to support your goals, and rewards economical and efficient movements that require coordinated muscular activations—but it also punishes you if you overdo any of the work. This session is designed as one that lets you push your engine, but also includes enough recovery to be able to keep pushing that engine appropriately during other parts of the week.”

Triathletes, runners, and cyclists all like to push their bodies to the limit. However, it is how well you recover that determines how much quality training you can do. Coach Lynda Wallenfels explains the best recovery practices that will help you stay healthy and training hard.

The most effective exercises for combatting patellar tendonitis might be the simplest

For those who experience knee pain, relief may be as simple as holding a squat.

According to a study published in the August 2016 issue of Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine, Australian researchers found isometric exercises—steady-state exercises, like wall sits and planks—can relieve knee pain caused by patellar tendonitis.

The fall season is packed with running events of all distances. If you are starting to worry that you may not be ready for your event, these tips from coach Bob Mittleman will help you be prepared and ready to achieve your goals.

This five-part run workout series will improve your speed while reinforcing proper form.Developing your run speed is not just about improving your fitness—it also requires a focus on efficiency in order to see real results over time. This progressive workout series from coach Dan McIntosh of Trisutto.com, is ideal for novice and intermediate athletes—as well as athletes returning from injury—because it gradually builds speed and endurance while reinforcing good form.

“Oftentimes we think quality is just about intensity, but I force my athletes, especially the beginners, to fight the urge to run faster and instead refine their movements under tighter control and lower stress,” McIntosh says. The workout starts with 20 minutes in week one and builds to 55 minutes of total running.

Do this work out once or twice a week, moving on to the next level after 2–3 weeks. These sessions should be done on a treadmill or a consistently flat, even surface.

Used correctly, swim paddles are a helpful tool for building strength and power. Paddles are designed to increase the swimmer’s hand surface area, creating greater forward momentum when correctly pulled through the water. They are often used in tandem with a pull buoy to place more emphasis on the upper body by removing all propulsion from the legs. While paddles are useful for training, they can add additional strain on the shoulders and amplify any faulty mechanics in your stroke. Because of this, new swimmers should refrain from using paddles until they have at least two years of swim training under their belt. This will allow time for technique improvement and muscle adaptation before introducing paddles.

“I’m excited to be back,” said Van Vleuten, who just a few weeks ago was still bruised and battered with a severe concussion and three broken vertebrae.

The Dutchwoman shocked fans worldwide when, on the now infamous descent of the Chinese Vista in Rio de Janeiro, she misjudged a corner and crashed into the concrete curb, flipping over her handlebars and landing awkwardly on a raised gutter. She lay motionless for several minutes and many feared the worst.

Who doesn’t love the banter at the post-ride park-up? Talk of the ride, other adventures, equipment and then there are those tidbits that usually fall under the class of TMI (too much information). Something I love about the ladies I ride with, is there is never such a thing as TMI. So true to form over my delicious almond chai on the weekend, the talk turned to sore lady-bits, to be specific saddle sores – that unwanted guest you never want to visit.

Men’s Health issues are rarely spoken about in the public forum and for some reason there seems to be a lot of confusion around what should be common knowledge when it comes to guy’s sexual and reproductive health. So instead of burying our heads in the sand and pretending we all know what’s what when it comes to vasectomy, we got some professionals to come in to provide some wise advice for those who have had, or who are looking to have the procedure, but who are concerned about when, if and how they might get back on their bike.

You probably thought this post was going to be about how to get your tongue un-stuck from the frozen flagpole, but you would be wrong.

Who else loves this movie beyond belief?

We are going down a serious road today, folks.

Lately,

I’ve been stuck.

I’m been trudging through the motions, but with no particular vision or enthusiasm. After a summer filled with intense training (which culminated in my big 6 day race), then immediately sending Sam off to college, I kind of fell into a funk. And life felt like it slowed to a grinding halt.

Below is an interview with Dr. Scott A. Rodeo regarding shoulder pain in swimmers, MRIs, and injury prevention. Dr. Scott Rodeo is the Head Team Physician for the New York Giants and is the Co-Chief Emeritus, Sports Medicine and Shoulder Service at the Hospital for Special Surgery. He is Professor of Orthapaedic Surgery at Cornell University and is an Attending Surgeon at the Hospital for Special Surgery and the New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Rodeo served as a Team Physician for the United States Olympic Team in 2004, 2008. and 2012 and has worked as the Team Physician for the U.S. National Swim Team at four international competitions. Rodeo is also the Medical Advisor to the Asphalt Green Swim Team in New York City, NY. Rodeo is highly decorated for his work in research and surgery, having won the Charles Neer Award from the American Shoulder and Elbow Society and the Excellence in Research Award from the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine. Rodeo graduated cum laude from Stanford University, where he completed his undergraduate work while on an athletic scholarship. He completed medical school graduating with honors from Cornell University Medical College.

High-volume, low-intensity vs low-volume, high-intensity training is one of the main concepts discussed in Part 1 and Part 2 of this journal. Evidence of the physiological effects of HIT (or HIIT) is of major interest for the sports science research community and every month several articles add more pieces to the HIT puzzle, including for swimming (1).

However, HIT’s effects on pre- and post-pubescents are still unclear due to a lack of published scientific papers. Coaches and athletes under 13 years old are trying to achieve the best results with various different training workouts.

A bike guru’s advice for developing and maintaining a perfect time trial position.

Professional triathlete Laura Siddall credited her second-place breakthrough performance at February’s Challenge Wanaka to working with coach Paul Buick, a New Zealand native who serves as the Purplepatch Fitness bike guru. Buick is known for going beyond just the bike fit—he assists athletes with how they shouldinteract with the bike.

While it’s not practical for most athletes to work so closely with a personal cycling coach, Buick shares his advice for developing and maintaining the perfect position on the bike.

Table of Contents

Prepare your joints for training and racing with this routine.

In order to properly free up the areas where triathletes tend to be tight, a proper warm-up should entail more than just a jog, says Erin Carson, founder of ECFIT Boulder, owner of Rally Sport Health & Fitness and strength coach to countless Boulder-based pros. “Swimming, biking and running work our joints in a limited range of motion,” she says. “Our hips, ankles and thoracic spines in particular get tight and short from so much repetitive motion. Mobility helps undo this tightness and allows us greater access to the muscles we’ve developed through training.”

Carson recommends incorporating mobility exercises into your weekly training as well as your pre-race routine (after a 8-10 minute warm-up jog). Here’s her favorite race day routine, which can easily be performed in the transition area.

Triathlon wetsuits have an average shelf life of about two years, according to Kenzie Jones of Poco Loco Swim Shop in Provo, Utah. However, that short lifespan is usually attributed to poor care, not poor quality. “I know someone who takes amazing care of his wetsuits, is in the water multiple times a week, and has a suit that’s lasted him seven years,” says Jones. “It’s just now showing visual signs of wear and tear.”

You can be like that guy, saving some money and enjoying a long, happy relationship with your wetsuit by showing it some love with these tips from Jones:

In our humble opinion, core exercises and yoga go together like peaches and cream. Why do we think they go together? It’s simple. Core and yoga compliment the other. Put another way, the better you become at one, the better you’ll be at the other. More importantly, core and yoga are an absolute MUST-DO for all competitive or recreational endurance athletes. The benefits are immense and boil down to improving comfort and performance in any sport.

Core Exercises

What’s the big deal about core?

In the past, traditional strength training programs for athletes focused on conditioning the main instruments of specific sports with the notion that fitter legs run and ride better, stronger arms swim faster, etc.Over the past few decades, experience from rehabilitating people with back injuries highlighted the importance of strengthening the central muscles of the trunk, aka “core muscles”.More importantly, it was recognized that only specific and unique exercises reconditioned these muscles after injury.

Lessons learned from physical therapy were soon applied in sports medicine not only with rehabilitation of sports injury but also improving performance.What has been generally recognized and accepted in working with athletes is that the core muscles act as a base of action for the arms and legs.Hence, the stronger and more stable the core, the more optimal an athlete’s control over the production and transfer of power to the limbs.Put another way, the core is the basis for all movement whether sports-related or not.Numerous studies have shown the benefit of core exercises for athletes including increased performance, endurance and resistance to injury.One study even showing that core exercises reduce blood lactate values following exercises.

What EXACTLY is the “core”!?

In the most general sense, the core muscles are the skeletal muscles of the torso.These muscles include the pelvic floor muscles, transversus abdominis, multifidus, internal and external obliques, rectus abdominis, erector spinae, latissimus dorsi, gluteus maximus, and trapezius.Some experts even include the diaphragm.The core muscles work together provide stability of the body in all 3 possible planes of movement.

How to do core exercise

There are numerous core exercises out there.Strengthening the core does not need to take up a ton of time or add to the stress of an already full training regimen.About 10-15 minutes per session 2-3 times a week is all you’ll need to see benefits.In our experience, athletes will see boosted speed and endurance as a direct result of improved comfort.

Yoga

History of yoga in a nutshell

In a broad sense, yoga includes a series of practices that include breath control, meditation and the performance of unique body positions.Yoga likely developed between the 6th and 5th centuries BCE in India and has ties not only to Hinduism but also Buddhism. In Eastern traditions, yoga still has strong ties to spirituality and can even encompass mystical ideas that many westerners would find very foreign.Some of these mystical ideas include pathways to omniscience and techniques for entering into other bodies. Yoga first travelled to the west in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.It wasn’t until practitioner began focusing on the body position facet that yoga became popular as a form of exercise in the 1980’s.

Why would an athlete want to do this?

Numerous studies have validated the benefits of yoga. In general, these benefits include improved muscular fitness and stress reduction. Additional benefits specifically pertaining to athletes include reduced oxygen consumption (i.e. it MAY make you go faster with less effort), reduced muscle soreness following exercise and improved mental focus.

How to do yoga

Performing yoga can be intimidating for the uninitiated.You can jump into various classes at your local gym or yoga studio.For most endurance athletes, however, a session of yoga does not need to be difficult.It can often be done alone at home and in less than 15 minutes.You’ll find yoga beneficial as a pre or post-workout ritual.We recommend doing it at least several times a week following your most stressful workouts.

We searched the internet high and low to find a few good resources for you:

The guys at Endurance Yoga put together a quick little routine for endurance athletes on YouTube:

Edward Heseltine of Cycling Yoga has a whole series on yoga for cyclists:

Go ahead and give core exercises and yoga a shot for a month or two. Two to three days a week for a half-hour or less is all you need (more is great). It won’t take away from time from sport specific training. We’re willing to bet that you’ll see significant gains (if nothing else you’ll have sexy abs!). If you don’t see benefits, then give us a shout. On the other hand, if you do see nice changes, we’d REALLY like to hear about it.

So you may be a fan of our skincare products like Doc’s All Natural Chamois Cream. We hope that your catching all the exciting sporting news covering cycling, triathlons, and running on our Facebook Fanpage or in our email news blasts. We love all the latest sporting news like you too and have created RSS feeds on our fanpage that automatically translate French and Dutch into English.

BUT have you noticed that when you click on the translated links, you go to a page that’s ENTIRELY in French or Dutch? Well, this blog post will give you some simple steps to set yourself up with nearly automatic translation of the news stories we’re linking you to.

All you need is Google’s Toolbar for Explorer or Firefox. Go here to download the toolbar for Explorer orhere for Firefox. If you use Google Chrome, you’re ready to translate without adding anything on. Google Chrome will ask you if you’d like to translate automatically whenever you navigate to a foreign language news site.

The following details setting up Explorer with the Google Translator Toolbar. The process for Firefox is similar but not identical.

Once you have the Google Toolbar in place, click on the “More>>” area (circled in yellow below)

Under “More>>” click on “Translate”. Once, “Translate” is a clickable area in your Google Toolbar, you can click on it to translate any webpage that is pulled up in your browser as seen below:

Click on the lower right “Translate” button, select your language, and away you go to new understanding. Remember that Doc’s feeds from Europe are almost always originally in French or Dutch.

Some Basic Rollerblading Tips

If you’ve never really given rollerblading (aka inline skating) a try, you’ll be pleased to know that it has very positive health benefits and is on par with bicycling and running as a great way to exercise.

While the idea of putting wheels on your feet may be a bit intimidating, it can be an incredibly rewarding experience. In fact a little practice in how to ride, stop, start and even fall and get up, can help you perfect your skating skills.

History of the Inline Skate

Known for his eccentric inventions such as self-operating machines (known as automata), John-Joseph Merlin invented the earliest form of what could be considered rollerblades, in 1760. These were basically boots, fastened with small metal wheels that he wore while demonstrating his numerous scientific inventions. While Merlin’s design wasn’t patented, other inventors would toy with the concept over the years until Louis Legrange created a type of inline skates in 1849 for an opera in which the characters were to appear skating on ice inside of a theatre. By all accounts the opera was a disaster, as the actors didn’t know how to stop or turn.

While other variations would follow over the decades, it wasn’t until 1953 when Ernest Kahlert patented an early inline skate that resembles today’s model. It wouldn’t be until the late 1980s that these skates were marketed as ‘Rollerblades’ and became incredibly popular. Rollerblades look a bit like ski boots with four polyurethane wheels mounted onto a frame in a single line (or inline). Rollerblades feature a hard rubber brake, usually on the heel of the boot, which allows skaters to stop or help negotiate turns.

Rollerblading and Health Benefits

Inline Skaters take it to the street. Photo Courtesy of papershower.com

Rollerblading is great for your heart as a cardio exercise. For example, if you were to skate for just 15 minutes you can burn close to 200 calories, whereas within an hour you can burn off up to 650.

Despite what you may think, inline skating is a low impact exercise that, according to some doctors, is more beneficial than bicycling and running. As you’re constantly moving your legs and arms, skating also helps to improve your hip, thigh, arm and back muscles.

If you tend to be on the klutzy side, rollerblading can help you get a hold of your overall coordination. Balance is the key (the same as riding a bicycle, ice skating, skateboarding, etc.), and it may a little time to get used to, but skating will generally improve your flexibility as well as your coordination. Once you manage your balance you’ll be able to blade with a seamless flow.

Different Types of Rollerblades

There are many types of inline skates, with varying wheel sizes that are available for different applications, such as roller hockey, aggressive skating, freestyle slalom and speed skating among others. As the wheels come in different sizes, it should be noted that the smaller the wheel, the greater the acceleration and ability to maneuver, while larger wheels gradually take more energy to get going.

Whatever type of skate you choose, be sure that they’re comfortable and fit properly; any extra space on the sides and in the toes and heels, where your feet might have a tendency to slip, can cause problems. At first, gaining some sort of balance may be problematic, but that’s part of the challenge, especially learning how to move your feet and legs. If you’ve done a fair amount of ice-skating, then this should come as second nature.

Getting Started

If you’ve managed to master the basic movements to get you going, then you should move on to the next phase: Falling down and getting up.

First things first: get kneepads, elbow pads, wrist guards and a helmet, because falling is part of the game. You’re better off falling forwards than backwards, because the pads can help with any potential shocks; falling backwards will cause problems for your back. If you feel that you’re going to fall backwards, try to grab onto your knees, which will help you lean forward. You may want to practice this a few times on a carpeted surface, to have an idea of what you’re doing when you actually take it on the road.

Practicing how to brake will also help if you find yourself in a tricky spot. The best way to brake is to move one of your feet forward (it doesn’t matter which one) and slightly bend your knee so that you apply pressure on the heel of your skate until you make a full stop.

In addition to these basic tips, you should start out slowly, probably in your driveway, if you have one. Having a proper understanding of how to balance, move and stop will eventually help you have a fun skating experience.

If you never really considered meditation, you may at first think that it’s just sitting indian style and chanting. No so. While that’s one element of meditation, there’s much more to it. Meditation and sports are both intertwined as they utilize breathing, posture and concentration. There are many different types of meditation, and surprisingly enough, it can be extremely beneficial if you’re an athlete. Tiger Woods, Willie Stargell, Gary Player, Arthur Ashe and Joe Namath are just a few well known athletes who have been known to meditate.

Even if you have a passing interest in meditation, it can be of great help in the long run.Think of it as a way of preparing yourself for what may be an arduous task. While there are mystical and religious elements involved, much of meditation involves training the mind to think with greater clarity.

This can be helpful if, let’s say, you’re training for endurance sports. You have to be focused and meditation is one way to help improve your focus and concentration. Meditation can help direct awareness and allow you to filter out unnecessary intrusions that can serve as distractions. It can also help you overcome any unwanted apprehension as well as feelings of uncertainty and fear. If you have feelings of impending defeat, then you’re more apt to have a sub par performance; the more deeply involved and focused you are, the greater your ability to perform. More importantly, it may help with recover during tough training periods.

Boost recovery with Doc’s Muscle Balm

Meditation is not as difficult as it sounds. Once you get the hang of it, you can clear your head of all the non-essential clutter, so that you can focus on your athletic performance. We have too much information swirling in our heads, which is why meditation works as a way to decrease it, while also helping you develop a greater focus on being calm, which can be an added plus for whatever sport you’re involved in.

Mantras are a way of helping you improve certain elements of your athletic performance. If you’re a golfer you can say something akin to “I will improve my swing” which once it’s set in your mind can have great benefits in the long run. Saying something like this repeatedly to yourself while meditating can help you focus on improving any athletic element that you might be having an issue with.

Meditation Techniques and Positions

Meditation takes very little effort; in many ways it’s the equivalent of taking a nap, yet in this case you’re more alert and focused.

The common form of meditation position is called the Zazen position. As an element of Zen Buddhism, Zazen is used to help relax both the body and the mind.

Posture is one of the most important elements of meditation. You should start off by finding a comfortable posture and have a cushion to sit on, which will help ground you, so do your best to find a posture that allows you to be comfortable for a lengthy period of time without any unnecessary strain. The best posture is one where your spine is completely straight, which will let your body weight transfer through your vertebrae all the way down to the cushion.

Some of the popular positions include:

The full lotus, where while sitting, you place your right foot on your left thigh, as high as you can, followed by left foot on your right thigh.

The half lotus is similar to the full, except here you place your left foot on your right thigh, while your right foot sits under the left thigh.

If sitting on a cushion is too strenuous for you, try using a chair. It’s important to sit upright and forward and not to press your back against the chair. Keep your spine comfortable and erect. You can use a pad or a pillow to help situate your back and keep a straight posture. Your feet should be flat on the floor, with the legs spread at a comfy distance to help stabilize you.

Meditation has been around since the beginning of time and millions of people use it with positive results. Not only can it help you focus in terms of athletic performance it can also help you relax and focus and achieve emotional well-being.

How to Stretch Yourself Back into Shape

Winter’s almost over, so it’s time to get active once again. With spring on the horizon, now is the time to put down the remote control, give the video games a rest and get yourself back in shape. Stretching is the best way to get your muscles acclimated to any kind of athletic activity.

Stretching: Some Introductory Tips

If you’ve been inactive for the past few months, basic stretching can help you limber up and allow your muscles to acclimate to any activity as well as any unforeseen injuries. Stretching helps you improve your overall circulation as blood gets moving through your whole body helping your muscles repair themselves quicker should you happen to pull them.

Stretching also improves your flexibility as well as muscle elasticity. Greater flexibility will lead to overall better posture, and stretching is also a plus if you suffer from chronic back pain. Stretching muscles such as your quadriceps and hamstrings will help alleviate any back pain.

Most importantly for endurance athletes is all about improving RECOVERY.

Stretching isn’t just holding your arms out for ten seconds, there’s a lot more to it and there are different types of stretches to help different parts of your body. You should always remember to stretch before and after any type of exercise. Here’s a few of the most common stretching methods:

Dynamic stretching is mainly basic movements, such as hip rotations, which help get the body tuned up before any kind of workout; these are slow and gentle movements that help prepare you for any kind of high endurance exercise.

Static stretching is a bit more difficult as you fins a certain position and hold it for up to 60 seconds; you can definitely feel some pulling, but it’s a great way to help loosen muscles after any kind of workout.

If you’ve already warmed up a bit, you may want to venture into Isometric stretching, a form of static stretching that can help develop your muscle tendons and joints. These are the kind of stretches where you can use a wall to help you lengthen your muscles rather effectively.

Sooth muscles with Doc’s Muscle Balm

Why Stretching is so Important

First things first: Take the time to warm up before you stretch. Walk around a bit and get yourself moving before even beginning to stretch…You’ll stretch more effectively if you’re muscles are warmed up, which helps the blood flow and helps make them more elastic.

If you’re getting ready to exercise, you should hold your stretches for no more than 30 seconds as it will prepare your muscles. Once you’re done with any activities, you should hold your stretches no more than 60 seconds, to help improve flexibility.

Stretching both sides of your body will also equalize your flexibility; you don’t want to focus on just one area, so even it out and give special attention to the muscles that you’re stretching. For example, if you’re planning on going on a run, then give extra attention to your legs.

Also, the worst thing you can do is bounce while you stretch. Many people do this without realizing that it causes more harm to your muscles than good. Bouncing can actually tear parts of your muscles, which can make your muscles extremely tight and increasing the likelihood of injuries. You’ll actually find it hard to make the muscles flexible by bouncing, so it’s best to avoid it altogether.

It’s very easy to pull muscles; in fact, we tend to take our muscles for granted, thinking that they’ll work out any kinks they have. If your muscles should hurt after a workout, try Doc’s All Natural Muscle Balm™, which creates a soothing and long lasting warming sensation that will help speed recovery and ease muscle pain.

You have to get into the routine of stretching in order to make it truly effective. It’s similar to trying yoga or diving a car for the first time; it’s not easy at first, but after a while you’ll get the hang of it.

I found this gem of a video on YouTube. Karena shows a great yoga-based stretching routine that will take less than 10 minutes. She’s targeting triathletes but the stretches work great for triathletes, runners and cyclists alike.

Some Health Issues that Can Affect Runners – Part Two: Skin Irritations

In our last post, we discussed the important of nutrition in regards to running. There are a variety of other issues to keep in mind, some minor and some extremely serious, that can affect your running experience, but are generally treatable.

Other Treatable Issues

Bloody Nipples

Bloody nipples are a delicate topic, yet is one that’s all too common for runners. Primarily affecting men, this symptom is caused when nipples continuously rub against their shirt; the end result can be extremely painful, which can lead to bleeding and chaffing. Protective measures can range from using bandaids which can protect the nipples from any contact, to wearing a shirt made from a synthetic material (which tends to be less abrasive) as opposed to cotton. As a precautionary measure, products such as Doc’s All Natural Chafe Stick™ works as a barrier against chaffing, not just for nipples, but other areas such as thighs and feet.

Black Toenail

If you’ve ever had the irritating sensation of your toes rubbing against the front of your shoe, you’re not alone. Black Toenail is where a blood blister can form underneath your toenails, all of which is caused by this nagging rubbing inside the shoe. Once the blisters form, they have no room to breathe and they become incredibly painful. As it takes a while to heal, you can actually run the risk of losing your toenail as a result. Don’t mess with your toes if this should happen to you; the pain will eventually subside after a day or two, but if it doesn’t improve, be sure to see a doctor. You can avoid black toenail entirely if you think ahead and get a good pair of shoes that fit your feet properly, as well as durable wicking socks, that will give your feet room to breathe.

Hives and Other Skin Irritations

Your blood flows through capillaries when you exercise, yet if you’re inactive, you can experience symptoms such as itchy legs and hives. Itchy skin is an internal condition, especially if you experience long periods of athletic inactivity. Your capillaries tend to expand when you exercise, yet, if you’re inactive for a period of time, these capillaries have a tendency to collapse, which restricts the flow of blood. This sends signals to the brain, which is often interpreted as an itch. Solving this issue can be helped, not just by exercising every day, but also by using skin creams and moisturizers, such as Doc’s All Natural Saddle Sore Ointment™, which can soothe and heals any kind of skin breakdown.

One very serious issue that affects many runners is Exercise-Induced Anaphylaxis. Often considered an allergic reaction, it can lead to symptoms such as low blood pressure, breathing issues, circulatory and gastrointestinal problems. This can be triggered by a range of things such as medications, specific types of food such as nuts, seafood and even dairy. If you have these types of flare ups, avoid exercising on an empty stomach and eating anything that can exacerbate this situation for at least 24 hours. In most cases this is a treatable condition, primarily with the use of a epinephrine injection pen prescribed by a doctor.

As mentioned above, many of these conditions are treatable, so be aware and with a little TLC you should be able to have a long running career.

If you’re a highly experienced runner, or just venturing into it for the first time, there are many issues that can greatly affect you and possibly impact your ability to run. Even the most seasoned of runners can fall victim to afflictions ranging from minor irritations to major health issues, that in many cases are simply unavoidable. However, with a little common sense, some precautionary measures and plenty of TLC, most of these irritations can be preventable. But first, let’s start with nutrition…

Nutrition Tips

Nutrition is incredibly important when it comes to running, especially as your body requires a greater number of calories in order to properly fuel itself and function properly. Watch what you eat and avoid the junk food…there’s no nutritional value in junk food, so be sure eat plenty of fruit, vegetables and whole grains. If your body does not have enough fuel from the right resources, your metabolism will be greatly affected, so be sure to maintain a proper diet. If you do eat before a run, make sure that you give yourself plenty of time to digest, at least three hours, before hitting the road.

It’s important to have a good balance of protein, fat and vitamins. Protein has the ability to make you feel full for longer periods of time. You should have no more that 20% of protein in your daily diet, which includes foods such as fish, lean meat and especially low fat dairy products. Beans, grans and chicken are also good sources of protein.

As for fats, you should only eat foods that are low in saturated fats and have plenty of omega-3s, which have positive health benefits and are know to help stave off various diseases. If you like nuts, especially walnuts, then this is a plus as walnuts and fatty fish, such as salmon and tuna also provide a good source. If you’re not a fan of these types of foods, then fish oil tablets are a great way of getting omega-3s into your system.

Remember when you were a kid and you were told to drink your milk? Primarily found in milk, fish and eggs, Vitamin D can actually help strengthen bones, reduce the risk of autoimmune diseases and help prevent osteoporosis.

Vitamin E helps produce red blood cells; it also helps strengthen sore muscles as well as giving a boost to the immune system. E is usually found in foods such as eggs, nuts, sunflower seeds, and dark green leafy vegetables.

Animal products, such as meat and eggs are a good source of Vitamin A, which is known to help boost your vision and promote cell growth. This assists in bone development, therefore reducing the risk of broken bones.

Hydration

Make sure that you’re properly hydrated prior to any run as water on its own doesn’t have the ability to replenish depleted electrolytes. Everyone swears by Gatorade, but you can also try homemade remedies such as lime juice with a little salt and sugar as well, which will help increase electrolytes in your system.

Everyone at some point has experienced diarrhea, flatulence and cramping during a run; it can be painful as well as embarrassing. This can be caused by a number of factors such as irritable bowel syndrome, poor blood flow, poor diet, electrolyte deficiency and dehydration. Again, nutrition can play a crucial role here, so you want to eat foods that will help bind such as pasta, bananas, and grain related foods such as bagels and oatmeal; you should also avoid dairy if you have lactose issues, which can also cause diarrhea.